In It For Life
by carryonmy-waywardson
Summary: Alternate-Universe; Castiel helps Sam take care of his son, Caleb, after his mother passes away.


**Pairing: **Sam/Castiel.  
><strong>Description: <strong>AU; Sam and Castiel are taking care of Sam's son together.  
><strong>Warning:<strong> Fluff, cuteness, and adorableness will ensue.

* * *

><p>"Daddy.." The word was drawn out, in a typical four year's drawl, and Sam smiled at the familiar voice, walking to the table; tie undone. Sam's son, Caleb, was sitting at the table, a bowl of cereal in front of him, holding a spoon in one of his tiny hands. Big hazel eyes looked up, catching Sam's attention as he stooped, eye level with his son.<p>

"Yes, Caleb?" Sam had a smile on his face as he looked at his son; Caleb had dark brown hair, that was curling around the edges - Sam couldn't bring himself to cut them - and big, beautiful hazel-green eyes. When Sam looked at Caleb, he saw so much of the kid's mother in him, mixed with certain attributes from Sam himself.

"Where's daddy-Cas?" Caleb dropped his eyes to the Lucky Charms floating in the bowl in front of him and pushed them around with his spoon. Sam chuckled and kissed the top of Caleb's head, ruffling his hair slightly.

"He'll be here in a minute, Caleb - eat your breakfast before he gets here." Sam walked to the counter and grabbed the coffee pot, refilling his mug before setting the pot back in its holder. He went through his routine; shaking creamer into the dark liquid, along with three spoonfuls of sugar, before stirring it. Sam gripped the handle of his mug and walked to the refrigerator, eyes glancing over at Caleb.

Caleb was sitting up on his booster seat, working his spoon around the bowl, before bringing it to his mouth; making 'rocket ship noises,' like Castiel always did. Shaking his head, Sam chuckled softly to himself and opened the fridge, grabbing the carton of milk and opening it; pouring some into his coffee. Shutting the fridge, Sam moved to the table, taking a seat next to his son, and stirred his coffee once more before taking a long sip.

In midst of setting his coffee cup back onto the table, Sam heard the front door open, followed by a greeting from Castiel. At the sound of his daddy-Cas' voice, Caleb giggled and scrambled off of his chair, running to the living room. Sam sat still, a smile on his face as he heard the kid giggle, followed by Castiel's gruff, yet beautiful, laughter.

"Daddy! DADDY!" Caleb yelled, and Sam rolled his eyes playfully, laughing softly as he pushed himself away from the table. He walked into the living room, hands shoved deep into the pockets of his slacks, eyes on Caleb and Castiel.

"Daddy-Cas is here, daddy!" Caleb giggled as Castiel picked him up, and the kid wrapped his arms around the man's neck. Sam nodded, the smile never leaving his face, but only growing wider, as he stepped in to become part of the scene.

"Welcome home, daddy-Cas." Sam smiled and leaned in, beside Caleb's head, kissing Castiel softly on the lips. When they broke their kiss, Caleb was looking up at them with big, curious eyes, and a pout on his lips.

"Want a kiss." Caleb muttered and looked down. Castiel and Sam looked at each other, smiled, and each kissed one of Caleb's rosy cheeks, sending him into a fit of giggles. Caleb squirmed in Castiel's arms as the two men pulled away and smiled up at his father, and his partner.

"Daddy-Cas?" Caleb's voice was low as he looked at the man holding him, a pair of piercing blue eyes locking on the child.

"Yes, Caleb?" Castiel responded, moving their little party back to the kitchen, and sitting down at the table. Caleb sighed as Castiel moved him onto his lap, so that the kid was sitting on his knee, and looked up at him with big eyes.

"Will you take me to school?" Caleb gave Castiel a small pout, and the man laughed, nodding his head as he leaned down, placing a kiss on top of Caleb's head. The kid squealed and jumped off of Castiel's lap, running down the hall, and toward his room.

Sam walked up beside Castiel and leaned down, brushing his lips against the other man's, and smiling. Sighing softly, Castiel shut his eyes and grabbed Sam's tie, holding either side as the two of them kissed. The kiss lasted for a minute, before Sam pulled away and ran a hand along Castiel's, watching his eyes blink open.

"I need to finish getting ready." Sam sighed as he straightened up, watching as Castiel stood and grinned at him. Before Sam knew it, Castiel was tying his tie, eyebrows knit in concentration. Laughing, Sam leaned in and caught Castiel's lips once more, getting a small yelp from the other man, before he pulled away.

"Big case today?" Castiel asked as he finished adjusting Sam's tie, smoothing his hands over the taller man's dress shirt. Sam sighed and nodded, wrapping his arms around Castiel's shoulders, their eyes locking as Castiel moved his arms around Sam's waist.

"Yeah, I'm defending some guy who is _accused_of beating his wife." Sam spoke the word 'accused' as though there were air quotes attached to it and sighed again. He knew that, when he got home after a long, and grueling case, that Caleb and Castiel would be there waiting for him. Now a days that was the only thing that got him through the day - he was a criminal defense lawyer, that dealt with cases mostly involving domestic abuse and murder. So, it was nice to have a family at home, waiting for him with open arms, or waiting to be tucked in, and read to.

"I'll be home at five, if the jury is quick, sometime after that if they're slow." Sam leaned in to peck Castiel's lips once more before he broke contact. The truth was, Sam just wanted to stay home with the only two men that had never disappointed him; wanted to lay on the couch all day and watch Finding Nemo, or Cars, which were two of Caleb's favorite movies. But, Sam couldn't have his way, and he _had_to go play lawyer and try and keep a man out of jail, while making money to provide for his family.

Castiel nodded, watching Sam shrug into his jacket and smiled. They had the perfect little family, he and Sam; a little boy who loved them _both_ with his entire heart, and they had a great relationship. Just as Castiel turned around, Caleb was running back into the kitchen with his jacket, backpack, and shoes on.

"Oh, Caleb! You put your own shoes on!" Castiel gushed as he knelt down, appraising Caleb's dress-up job. Caleb beamed at both Castiel and his father, a huge smile on his face in pride. Sam and Castiel clapped approvingly and Sam bent down, placing a kiss on Caleb's forehead.

"Be good, Caleb. I love you." Sam hugged his son and held on for longer than necessary, pulling way only when Caleb complained that he was 'smushing him.' Pulling away, Sam chuckled and ruffled Caleb's hair before standing, grabbing his briefcase off of the table.

"Love you, daddy." Caleb wrapped his arms around Sam's leg and hugged it tightly, causing Sam to smile even wider. Castiel looked at the two of them, and felt his heart swell. He loved Caleb as if the kid was his own, and Sam had made him feel like part of the family from the beginning.

"Alright, Cabes." Castiel said once Caleb had pulled away from Sam's leg, and bent down to zip the kid's jacket up. "It's cold outside, so why don't we go get your monkey hat?" Caleb's face lit up at the suggestion and he nodded, waving at Sam before his hand slipped into Castiel's.

"Have fun. I love you both." Sam smiled, watching the two people he loved _most _on the Earth walk away. Sighing, Sam walked out of the kitchen and into the living room, pausing momentarily to slip his jacket on, and grab his car keys. He was out of the door seconds later, bracing himself against the cold weather.

Castiel helped Caleb into his monkey hat, before putting his own on and grabbing the kid's hand again. Minutes after Sam left, Castiel was piling Caleb into his car seat, before they were on their way to daycare. On the way to school - as Caleb called it - Caleb had asked Castiel a bunch of questions about his job.

"Does your students color?" "What do you teach?" "Is it fun?" "Is there naptime?" Had been just a _few_ questions Caleb had asked Castiel, and he had answered each one - "No, they don't color; I teach Philosophy; It can be fun sometimes; No, there isn't an _allowed_ naptime, though some of my students do fall asleep."

All of those answers seemed to suffice, because Caleb got quiet, and Castiel watched him in the rear-view mirror. He was swaying, slightly, to the soft, classical music Castiel had been playing since they had left the house. Smiling, Castiel's eyes went back to the road, and in moments he was pulling into the small, independently-owned daycare that Caleb had been going to since he was a year old.

Castiel parked in front, shut the car off and climbed out, opening Caleb's door. After Caleb was unbuckled, Castiel hoisted him out of his car seat and set him beside the car, while grabbing the kid's backpack. Castiel shut the door, grabbed Caleb's hand in one hand, while holding his bag in the other, and the two of them walked to the front door.

When they walked in, a burst of warm air hit their faces and Castiel sighed, reveling him the warmth. Caleb giggled and tugged Castiel's hand, leading him down the hallway, until they stopped in front of a door marked, "Toddlers 2-4." Smiling down at Caleb, Castiel pushed the door open and Caleb lead them through it, running over to a row of cubbyholes, which each had the name of a child taped above it.

"Mine." Caleb pointed to a blue box, with a tag that clearly stated his name and Castiel bent down, holding his hand out for a high-five. Caleb slapped his hand against Castiel's and giggled, grabbing his bag and pushing it into the box. Castiel helped Caleb out of his jacket, and that too went into the box with everything else.

"Mr. Novak." A female voice called and Castiel stood, turning to find the source of the greeting. His eyes fell on a young woman, shorter than himself, with green eyes and curly brown hair. He recognized her as a lady named Amy - or _Miss Amy_, according to Caleb - and smiled at her.

"Amy, hi." Castiel offered his hand, and Amy gladly took it, shaking it and returning Castiel's smile. Beside him, Caleb was hugging Castiel's leg and looking up at the woman in front of them, resting his head against Castiel.

"You two have matching hats, that's adorable." Amy giggled as she bent down, eye-level with Caleb, who was giggling and nodding his head. The young lady looked up again, her smile softening. "Usually Mr. Winchester brings Caleb - is he working?" Her eyebrows knit together as she stood, and Castiel nodded.

"Plus, Caleb asked me to bring him." Castiel smiled and looked down at Caleb, who had let go of his legs just before running off to join a group of children. The young lady smiled, again, and nodded, before turning her attention to the group. Nodding to himself, Castiel walked to the door and waved to Caleb, before disappearing.

* * *

><p>Several hours, and two classes later, Castiel had picked Caleb up, with the promise of a trip to the grocery store, which had excited the kid more than either Sam or Castiel could comprehend. When they arrived at the supermarket, Castiel looked at his phone, reading a text message from Sam, which stated <em>'Be home at five, the jury is eating this guy's story up. Love you, and Caleb.'<em>

Castiel smiled and slipped his phone into his pocket before shutting the car off and getting out. Slipping into the same routine, Castiel had gotten Caleb out of his car seat with ease, and they were walking toward the store, hand in hand. Caleb was pointing out cars, saying their colors in English, then Spanish - which Castiel had taught him.

"Very good," Castiel smiled as the store's doors opened and Caleb gasped at them, looking up at Castiel with an amazed look. Chuckling, Castiel lead Caleb into the store and grabbed a cart, hoisting Caleb up and setting him in the front compartment. After Caleb was properly buckled, Castiel began maneuvering the cart around the store.

"What do you want for dinner, Cabes?" Castiel asked, glancing down aisle after aisle, trying to think of something to fix. Caleb put a finger to his lips, like Sam usually did, and made his famous thinking face - which was also signature of Sam.

"Pasta." Caleb spoke up, and Castiel nodded, veering down the pasta aisle and stopping in front of a variety of different noodles. Both of them looked at their options, before Caleb pointed at a box, high on the shelf. "Those."

Castiel grabbed the box, holding it out to make sure that's what Caleb meant and, when the kid nodded, tossed the box into the cart. He moved down further, grabbing the ingredients to make his signature spaghetti and meatballs, listening to Caleb name off certain items around them.

Their grocery trip had taken just over an hour, and had been filled with compliments on their matching sock monkey hats, to which Caleb had gushed and said his daddy - Sam - had one just like it. That comment made people confused, and Castiel spent a few minutes explaining their situation, before he was piling the groceries in the car, before putting Caleb in his car seat.

Castiel glanced at the time - three-oh-five PM - and turned the car on, backing out of his parking space, before heading home. On the ride back to their house, Caleb asked Castiel more questions - about certain cars that passed, if daddy was going to be home for dinner, and if he could have a puppy (which was more common of a question than both Sam and Castiel would have liked.)

"Daddy-Cas?" Caleb asked, after several minutes of silence, and Castiel responded with a low _'hm?_' He watched the kid in the rear-view and saw him looking out the window, a sad look on his face. "Where's mommy?" Caleb asked, his eyes searching the outside world around them as they moved down the road.

The question made Castiel's heart stop, like it always did, and he cleared his throat. Caleb had been asking that question since he'd learned to put words together, and Castiel knew that it was just a matter of time until he'd be asked it again.

"Caleb, your daddy and I will explain that to you tonight, okay?" Castiel swallowed hard, eyes going to the mirror again, once he stopped at a red light. He watched Caleb nod, his eyes never leaving the window, and Castiel's heart dropped into his stomach.

* * *

><p>At eight o'clock that evening, after Caleb had his bath and was in his pajamas, Sam settled onto the couch with him and Castiel. The two grown-ups had discussed talking to Caleb about his mother, and had both agreed to tell him that she was gone. Sam had be hesitant at first, worried that it might mess him up, but Castiel insisted on telling him gently - saying that Jess was an angel in heaven.<p>

"Caleb, do you remember the question you asked daddy-Cas today?" Sam asked, watching as Caleb nodded his head, moving his eyes until they were on Sam's. Swallowing hard, Sam looked up at Castiel, who nodded his head encouragingly and gave him a small smile.

"Well, buddy.." Sam took a deep breath, eyes falling on Caleb once again. "Your mommy isn't here anymore, Caleb." Sam watched as confusion colored his son's face and his eyes softened.

"Where is mommy?" Caleb's voice was small, and Sam could sense the sadness behind it, as well as the confusion. Sam gathered the small child in his arms and held him close, rubbing his back slowly.

"You see, mommy is in Heaven, with God. You know who God is, right?" Caleb nodded and pulled away from Sam, eyes big and a small smile on his face. "Daddy-Cas tells me 'bout him. He watches over everybody."

Sam smiled and his eyes flashed up to Castiel, who was smiling and blushing faintly. With a deep sigh, Sam turned his gaze back to Caleb and nodded, smiling even more.

"Yes, he watches over everyone, even you. But sometimes, he needs angels - special ones, and he takes the best people for that job. See, your mom was one of those special people, Caleb. And now, she's in Heaven, watching over you, me, and even daddy-Cas." Sam felt tears rimming his eyes as he talked about his late wife, and Caleb looked up at his father, reaching a hand to brush his fingers under Sam's eyes.

"Don't be sad, daddy.." Caleb whispered as he dropped his hand and smiled brightly up at his father. "Mommy's watching me, and she's an angel." With a small nod, Caleb scrambled onto the floor and folded his hands under his chin, whispering a small prayer.

"Dear God," Caleb started off, closing his eyes and leaning his chin onto his hands, like Castiel had shown him. "Thank you for daddy, daddy-Cas, and mommy, even though she's an angel. She's watching over me, and loving me, and letting daddy and daddy-Cas love me. Amen."

Sam and Castiel watched Caleb, their hands pressed together, and fingers laced. There were tears falling from Sam's eyes, as tears rimmed Castiel's, and they looked at each other, chuckling and wiping at their eyes. Caleb turned, dropping his hands and smiled at his dads.

"Alright, Caleb Jace Winchester." Sam sighed as he pulled his hand from Castiel's and stood, only to scoop his son up in his arms. "It's time for bed." Caleb groaned in protest, but Sam shook his head, standing his ground.

"Tell Cas goodnight." Sam brought Caleb over to Castiel, watching as he wrapped his arms around the man's neck and whispered goodnight, and that he loved him. Castiel repeated the words, kissed Caleb's head and waved when Sam carried him down the hall, and into his room.

Twenty minutes later, Sam rejoined Castiel on the couch and wrapped his arms around him, holding Castiel close. They lay in silence; Castiel moving his fingertips along Sam's forearm slowly, and Sam running his fingers up and down Castiel's side. As they lay together, their son slept soundly in his room only feet away, his mother watching over him from Heaven, while his fathers were in the living room.


End file.
